Are You Naturally a Short Sleeper?

Although I promised to add more hours to my snooze time last week (after reading a study that found if you sleep less than six hours, you're probably short-changing yourself mentally), a new answer to my less-than-stellar snoozing habits came up: perhaps I'm genetically just a short sleeper?

According to experts, some people (exact statistics are unknown) have a mutation on a gene that regulates sleep-wake cycle, called hDEC2. The result of this abnormality? Those people can function on less sleep, usually around four hours worth. They feel refreshed and are able to fully execute a busy day on this smaller amount of sleep.

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Does this sound like you? Check your habits before jumping to conclusions. One expert was careful to warn that problems arise when you force yourself to function on less sleep (with stimulants like caffeine) when your body most likely needs more (most of us need seven to eight hours each night).

But, if you naturally jump out of bed at 4 am after crashing at midnight, great, good for you! It could be in your genes.